WHERE'S WALLY? ... A Google Earth view of Hobart's suburbs. Victorian councils are using the website to monitor ratepayer compliance, but Tasmanian councils say they are not doing so.
TASMANIAN councils have rejected the use of eyes in the sky to spy on ratepayers.
Victorian councils have recently used Google Earth and Google Maps to monitor rate-payer compliance in terms of illegal home renovations, unfenced swimming pools, unregistered pets and unauthorised demolition.
But Hobart, Glenorchy and Kingborough mayors agree that the old-fashioned dob-in-a-neighbour method is far more effective.
Glenorchy Mayor Adriana Taylor said she would not endorse the use of Google's technology because it boarded on an invasion of privacy.
"It's certainly not a path I would want to go down," she said. "I like to engender a spirit of honesty and co-operation and working together with council.
"Not trying to catch people out by spying on them and carrying out measures that destroy trust and privacy."
Kingborough Mayor Graham Bury said that planning officers did use Google Earth to review land for planning purposes, but he had not thought of using it to check on ratepayers' compliance.
"I suppose it could be a good vehicle to monitor compliance," he said.
"But I just don't think it's necessary given the relatively small demography we have.
"I think our current system of relying on the people in the public to inform us if there is something untoward going on is far more effective for us."
Hobart Lord Mayor Rob Valentine said the council would not have the time or resources to monitor ratepayers with Google.
He said it was more effective relying on the complaints system and the observations of council workers.
"You have to be a bit careful -- it's like everything, there's a fine line between what's necessary and what's intrusive," he said.
Civil Liberties Council of Tasmania spokesman Paul Storr said Google Earth and Google Street View posed a great threat to privacy.
"It's yet another screw in the coffin -- more surveillance and more intrusion into peoples' privacy," he said.
The scariest part was that it could not be stopped, he said. |